Attorneys for Rodney Pearson filed a lawsuit in Federal Court Tuesday, Oct. 16 alleging the mayor of Jasper, city representatives and others conspired to not only terminate Pearson's employment as Chief of Police but destroy his reputation through the Mayor-owned local radio station, social media sites and other media outlets.

"Mayor Mike Lout used his influence and his radio station in an unrelenting pursuit to get Rodney Pearson out of office and the City Council members who originally voted him in," says Cade Bernsen, Pearson's attorney. "Rodney Pearson endured months of harassment, slander and racial discrimination only to be unfairly terminated and run out of town."

Lout said Tuesday afternoon that he has not see a copy of the lawsuit as of yet.

"I saw a press release that the Bernsen law firm sent out but that was it," Lout said.

Lout defended his actions as mayor of the city of Jasper during Pearson's tenure as police chief.

"I always acted in the best interests of the city of Jasper," Lout said. "(KJAS's) coverage of the Pearson tenure was independent of my position as mayor of Jasper."

The suit alleges Jasper city leaders subjected Pearson to ongoing, purposeful discrimination and unlawful employment practices, including the illegal public release of Pearson's personnel file and background check. Pearson accuses co-conspirators of the Mayor of slandering him with racial slurs on the radio station's Facebook page and orchestrating false allegations of assault against him. The suit alleges city leaders also knowingly submitted forged signatures on recall petitions to remove black Council Members, creating a white majority that publically fired Pearson without cause. This was the first recall in the history of Jasper. Mayor Lout unlawfully blocked a City Council investigation concerning the recall illegalities.

Rodney Pearson was the first officer to discover James Byrd Jr.'s body after his racially motivated dragging death in 1998. Pearson served as a Texas State Trooper for 20 years and was promoted numerous times with multiple commendations. In 2005, Pearson was awarded his Master Peace Officers certificate. Until February of 2011 Rodney Pearson served as Chief of the Jasper Volunteer Fire Department.